Shameless Self Expression

Nic Cage is a crummy hotel owner in Columbia who gets involved with sultry red-clad Annabelle Acosta, who comes armed with a whole lotta diamonds. Also entangled in this story are an aging sniper (Enrico Colantoni, of all people) with daughter issues, a couple of assassins (one played by Alimi Ballard), a corrupt cop (Ryan Kwanten), and other assorted seedy characters.   Neither the best nor worst of Nic Cage’s recent vehicles, this 2020 film from writer-director Ken Sanzel (writer of the average “The Replacement Killers” ) benefits from a good performance by Enrico Colantoni (cast rather against type). Whenever he’s off-screen, the film is far less interesting. Sadly, that’s more often than not. It starts well, but it goes nowhere just around the time Cage’s character finally comes to the fore. He gives a mumbly, pay check performance that suggests little if any investment (strange given he’s one of a billion producers). Former soap actor Ryan Kwanten is his usual dull self,...

Set in Mexico, Scott Adkins stars as a widowed former special forces op and parent to a moody teenage son (played Matthew Garbacz). After being drugged with a poison dart or some such, Adkins awakens to find his son has been kidnapped and a drug cartel boss (Mario Van Peebles, wearing a black cowboy hat) wants him to do some special favours to get the kid back. Basically, he wants Adkins to wipe out his competition. Karlee Perez plays Van Peebles’ main squeeze.   Director Isaac Florentine and star Scott Adkins are usually a good pairing ( “Undisputed II: Last Man Standing” in particular is outstanding), and that trend pretty much continues with this 2020 action movie. It’s not their best offering but it’s certainly better than the first “Ninja” movie, their only dud to date that I’ve seen. Scripted by Richard Lowry (a writer-director-editor who made something called “President Evil” about a deranged killer in a hybrid Trump and Michael Myers costume), the plot is high concep...